Background The Détente policy was seen as a cooling off and a relaxation period between the soviets and the Americans which started in 1969. It was a policy brought in by the US President Richard Nixon, designed to ease the tension and to make time for treaties to be finished up. Many treaties were signed during this period such as the SALT, Helsinki Accords and the START II treaty.
Summary The Détente policy was created by Richard Nixon in 1969. It was created to combat and prevent a nuclear war between the Soviets and the USA. The policy and some treaties were signed by the Soviets in an agreement that no more fighting would take place but this agreement only lasted a few years. The most important years of the détente one of the major turning points in the war. In 1972 US president Richard Nixon meet with Soviet Premier Brezhnev, he was the first US President to do this. This meeting drastically calmed the tension between the two superpowers. One of the main reasons for the détente was the Strategic Arms Limitation Talk(SALT) treaty. This treaty was created to limit the amount of Nuclear weapons that were being produced by both the Soviets and the US, as a result of this treaty a drastic decrease accrued in the production of weapons. But the temporary hiatus in the production of weapons came to and end in 1974, which also marked the end of Nixon’s run as president as he resigned later that year. One other reason for the end of the détente and the other treaties was due to the US opposition to Soviet treatment of the Jewish people. The détente ended when the Soviets invaded Afghanistan in 1979.
Perspectives
There were two fairly perspectives in the détente. The Soviets felt like this was a tax against them because they were the country creating nuclear weapons. They also felt that the US were scared of them and they were trying to protect themselves from losing even more in the cold war. The Americas were the one who created the treaties and the détente in the first place so they were seen very weak at the time and needing a break to be able to recoup and get all of their gear together and prepare for another round of fighting against the Soviets. The Americans also did this because they knew for a fact that the Soviets had a lot of nuclear weapons stacked and they wanted to use them. So the US in a way used the détente to protect themselves from the Soviets. The US also had lost a lot of soldiers and also a lot of equipment so they needed to find a way to get some to time with no pressure so they could resupply. It wasn’t just the Soviets who were very threatening with nuclear weapons this is also the time that the US had the only Atomic bomb in existence which made signing the treaty very easy for the Soviets.
Implications
Many short term implications came out of the détente and not many long term implications. The main implication that came out of the détente was the SALT treaty. The treaty was solely created to prevent the use and production of nuclear weapons. This implication was what the détente was founded on. Some advantages that came with détente was that the US got to resupply equipment and soldiers since they had suffered some much from the early battles of the Cold War. Another advantage to this was that the US and the Soviets could meet up in a peaceful place away from the battlefield, this was the first time that the US and the Soviets met. There were no real major consequences to the treaties if anything it certainly eased off the tension towards each other. In the end you could say that an increase in progression towards peace between the two was evident
.
Source 1 This source shows the US President of the time Richard Nixon and Soviet Premier Brezhnev discussing the the terms of the SALT treaty which is apart of the Détente policy. The policy was created by President Nixon to combat nuclear warfare. This indicates that the US and the Soviets can meet together on a civilized matter. Even though they might not like each other they are being professional. This indicates that the relationship between the Soviets and the US is getting better, this suggests that war might not break out between the two.
Source 2
This source is referring to the fact that the cold war could have sent the world into nuclear breakdown. The cartoon shows a man looking at a grave, this suggests that if the war gets out of hand then it could potentially end the world. Also in the background you can see a banner that says “The war to end all war”. This is suggesting that the impact of that the world will face after the war has ended will be virtually non-existent. It also reveals that because the consequences of the Cold War will be so bad that there won’t be another war after it.
Source 3 The cost of the Cold War
“The USA was looking for a new way of containing communism. The arms race was costing billions of US dollars. This expense was added to by the cost of the Vietnam War (1965-1973). In 1969 Nixon had already begun US troop withdrawals from South Vietnam. These mounting costs were affecting the US economy. Prices began to rise (inflation). The value of the US dollar against other currencies was threatened.”
This source emphasis how badly the US had suffered as a result of the Vietnamese war. This indicates that if the US got involved a in a war with the Soviets that they would loose a lot more than they could ever gain from this battle. It also shows how badly the US economy was suffering and if Nixon spent more money of weapons and troops to try and fight the Soviets right after fighting the Vietnamese, they would never stand a chance. This source sums up the affects that the Cold War had on the US and President Nixon.
Source 4
Changing Superpower relations
“Although the end of the Vietnamese war would not come for several years, by the beginning the withdrawal process, Nixon recognized America had limits to its power to contain every occasional communist rebel group threatening to gain power in a country. In the first excerpt in this chapter, “informal remarks in Guam with newsman (Nixon Doctrine), July 25, 1969,” President Nixon stressed that the United States must always be interested and involved in the Asian nations but not necessarily impose it form of Government there”.
This document explains how America had a limit to its power that there was no way that Nixon could try and stop all of the small Communist rebel groups and countries. It also talks about how they can’t push the US form of government on certain Asian Nations. It also talks about how the US should ignore the little communist rebel groups trying to take power from the US, because it is very unlikely that they will put a dint into the American system. The US also don’t have enough recourses to be able to take on every communist group they can find.
Source 5 This quote emphasis how much that Richard Nixon does not want communism in his country. Nixon sees communism as a plague and it is his duty to get rid of it, he thinks that communism is spread anymore than the whole world could be in danger if communism is spread anymore. He also feels that communism is going to be the end of the world. In Nixon’s mind communism is plotting, scheming, working and fighting against the people who feel and think that communism is not the right way to go. Overall he thinks that communism is more dangerous than the Cold War itself.
Source 6 This photo is a photo of the office of the détente and arms control team working to control the US and the Soviets. This source shows were the discussions and stipulations for the treaties and also the terms of the détente. This was one of the first times that the representatives of the Soviets met with the US representatives. This is also the place that Richard Nixon met with the Premier of the Soviets for the first time in history. This shows how good the relationship was between the US and the USSR at this point in time considering that they had a massive war.
Biblio details:
Atomicarchive.com. (2016). Easing The Tensions | Cold War: A Brief History | History of the Atomic Age | atomicarchive.com. [online] Available at: http://www.atomicarchive.com/History/coldwar/page16.shtml [Accessed 9 Aug. 2016].
Notes:
This wasn’t the best source.
Biblio details:
Atomicarchive.com. (2016). Easing The Tensions | Cold War: A Brief History | History of the Atomic Age | atomicarchive.com. [online] Available at: http://www.atomicarchive.com/History/coldwar/page16.shtml [Accessed 9 Aug. 2016].
Notes:
This source was reliable.
Biblio details:
Murphy, D. (2003). The Cold War. London: HarperCollins Publishing, pp.58-60.
Notes:
This was the best source for the information I needed.
Biblio details:
Hanes, S., Hanes, R. and Baker, L. (2004). Cold war. Farmington Hills, MI: UXL.
Notes:
This source had good points that no other source had made.
Question 1
The cold was seen as more of a hot then cold war because of all the action that was going between the USSR and the USA. In the period of 1961 and 1968 a lot went on and it isn’t hard to see why this was such a heated up time. So many events shaped that time to being one of the most disturbing times in history with so much violence going on all the time, it wasn’t just at one location wars and fights were kicking off all over Europe and south east Asia. Events that shaped this time were the Berlin Wall and Checkpoint Charlie being the most significant of the events that took place in that time. The Cuban Missile Crisis was one of the most recognisable events of the Cold War in which many people remember it. Along with countless treaties, agreements and battles this could be seen as one of the darkest times in the war and certainly one of the darkest times for the world in that era. The USSR were hell bent on getting Communism to every country and it was the USA’s job to try and stop the spread. Many of these battles took place in Berlin and on the Berlin Wall.
Question 2
The cold war is worth remembering because it nearly sent the wall into a nuclear melt down. It was also when communism nearly spread to all corners of the world. The cold war is also very significant because by the end of it, it showed how people can work together and overcome tragedy. It also in my opinion bought everyone closer, when the wall was pulled down it was a big event for the world and it bought the people of Berlin back together again and back as one. It is also major because of the battles between the USSR and the USA. The war also shaped great people that wouldn’t have been so generous if the war might not have happened, such as Fidel Castro. It is these types of battles that can shape nations and in the end they can also bring nations closer together or even further apart. If some of these events didn’t happen then everyone might be an enemy to each other but because of these wars countries work together and even become aligns because of it.
http://www.timetoast.com/timelines/the-cold-war-6b641b95-3d39-44dd-a7d9-d59be8e03316
Background
The Détente policy was seen as a cooling off and a relaxation period between the soviets and the Americans which started in 1969. It was a policy brought in by the US President Richard Nixon, designed to ease the tension and to make time for treaties to be finished up. Many treaties were signed during this period such as the SALT, Helsinki Accords and the START II treaty.
Summary
The Détente policy was created by Richard Nixon in 1969. It was created to combat and prevent a nuclear war between the Soviets and the USA. The policy and some treaties were signed by the Soviets in an agreement that no more fighting would take place but this agreement only lasted a few years. The most important years of the détente one of the major turning points in the war. In 1972 US president Richard Nixon meet with Soviet Premier Brezhnev, he was the first US President to do this. This meeting drastically calmed the tension between the two superpowers. One of the main reasons for the détente was the Strategic Arms Limitation Talk(SALT) treaty. This treaty was created to limit the amount of Nuclear weapons that were being produced by both the Soviets and the US, as a result of this treaty a drastic decrease accrued in the production of weapons. But the temporary hiatus in the production of weapons came to and end in 1974, which also marked the end of Nixon’s run as president as he resigned later that year. One other reason for the end of the détente and the other treaties was due to the US opposition to Soviet treatment of the Jewish people. The détente ended when the Soviets invaded Afghanistan in 1979.
Perspectives
There were two fairly perspectives in the détente. The Soviets felt like this was a tax against them because they were the country creating nuclear weapons. They also felt that the US were scared of them and they were trying to protect themselves from losing even more in the cold war. The Americas were the one who created the treaties and the détente in the first place so they were seen very weak at the time and needing a break to be able to recoup and get all of their gear together and prepare for another round of fighting against the Soviets. The Americans also did this because they knew for a fact that the Soviets had a lot of nuclear weapons stacked and they wanted to use them. So the US in a way used the détente to protect themselves from the Soviets. The US also had lost a lot of soldiers and also a lot of equipment so they needed to find a way to get some to time with no pressure so they could resupply. It wasn’t just the Soviets who were very threatening with nuclear weapons this is also the time that the US had the only Atomic bomb in existence which made signing the treaty very easy for the Soviets.
Implications
Many short term implications came out of the détente and not many long term implications. The main implication that came out of the détente was the SALT treaty. The treaty was solely created to prevent the use and production of nuclear weapons. This implication was what the détente was founded on. Some advantages that came with détente was that the US got to resupply equipment and soldiers since they had suffered some much from the early battles of the Cold War. Another advantage to this was that the US and the Soviets could meet up in a peaceful place away from the battlefield, this was the first time that the US and the Soviets met. There were no real major consequences to the treaties if anything it certainly eased off the tension towards each other. In the end you could say that an increase in progression towards peace between the two was evident
.
Source 1
This source shows the US President of the time Richard Nixon and Soviet Premier Brezhnev discussing the the terms of the SALT treaty which is apart of the Détente policy. The policy was created by President Nixon to combat nuclear warfare. This indicates that the US and the Soviets can meet together on a civilized matter. Even though they might not like each other they are being professional. This indicates that the relationship between the Soviets and the US is getting better, this suggests that war might not break out between the two.
Source 2
This source is referring to the fact that the cold war could have sent the world into nuclear breakdown. The cartoon shows a man looking at a grave, this suggests that if the war gets out of hand then it could potentially end the world. Also in the background you can see a banner that says “The war to end all war”. This is suggesting that the impact of that the world will face after the war has ended will be virtually non-existent. It also reveals that because the consequences of the Cold War will be so bad that there won’t be another war after it.
Source 3
The cost of the Cold War
“The USA was looking for a new way of containing communism. The arms race was costing billions of US dollars. This expense was added to by the cost of the Vietnam War (1965-1973). In 1969 Nixon had already begun US troop withdrawals from South Vietnam. These mounting costs were affecting the US economy. Prices began to rise (inflation). The value of the US dollar against other currencies was threatened.”
This source emphasis how badly the US had suffered as a result of the Vietnamese war. This indicates that if the US got involved a in a war with the Soviets that they would loose a lot more than they could ever gain from this battle. It also shows how badly the US economy was suffering and if Nixon spent more money of weapons and troops to try and fight the Soviets right after fighting the Vietnamese, they would never stand a chance. This source sums up the affects that the Cold War had on the US and President Nixon.
Source 4
Changing Superpower relations
“Although the end of the Vietnamese war would not come for several years, by the beginning the withdrawal process, Nixon recognized America had limits to its power to contain every occasional communist rebel group threatening to gain power in a country. In the first excerpt in this chapter, “informal remarks in Guam with newsman (Nixon Doctrine), July 25, 1969,” President Nixon stressed that the United States must always be interested and involved in the Asian nations but not necessarily impose it form of Government there”.
This document explains how America had a limit to its power that there was no way that Nixon could try and stop all of the small Communist rebel groups and countries. It also talks about how they can’t push the US form of government on certain Asian Nations. It also talks about how the US should ignore the little communist rebel groups trying to take power from the US, because it is very unlikely that they will put a dint into the American system. The US also don’t have enough recourses to be able to take on every communist group they can find.
Source 5
This quote emphasis how much that Richard Nixon does not want communism in his country. Nixon sees communism as a plague and it is his duty to get rid of it, he thinks that communism is spread anymore than the whole world could be in danger if communism is spread anymore. He also feels that communism is going to be the end of the world. In Nixon’s mind communism is plotting, scheming, working and fighting against the people who feel and think that communism is not the right way to go. Overall he thinks that communism is more dangerous than the Cold War itself.
Source 6
This photo is a photo of the office of the détente and arms control team working to control the US and the Soviets. This source shows were the discussions and stipulations for the treaties and also the terms of the détente. This was one of the first times that the representatives of the Soviets met with the US representatives. This is also the place that Richard Nixon met with the Premier of the Soviets for the first time in history. This shows how good the relationship was between the US and the USSR at this point in time considering that they had a massive war.
Question 1
The cold was seen as more of a hot then cold war because of all the action that was going between the USSR and the USA. In the period of 1961 and 1968 a lot went on and it isn’t hard to see why this was such a heated up time. So many events shaped that time to being one of the most disturbing times in history with so much violence going on all the time, it wasn’t just at one location wars and fights were kicking off all over Europe and south east Asia. Events that shaped this time were the Berlin Wall and Checkpoint Charlie being the most significant of the events that took place in that time. The Cuban Missile Crisis was one of the most recognisable events of the Cold War in which many people remember it. Along with countless treaties, agreements and battles this could be seen as one of the darkest times in the war and certainly one of the darkest times for the world in that era. The USSR were hell bent on getting Communism to every country and it was the USA’s job to try and stop the spread. Many of these battles took place in Berlin and on the Berlin Wall.
Question 2
The cold war is worth remembering because it nearly sent the wall into a nuclear melt down. It was also when communism nearly spread to all corners of the world. The cold war is also very significant because by the end of it, it showed how people can work together and overcome tragedy. It also in my opinion bought everyone closer, when the wall was pulled down it was a big event for the world and it bought the people of Berlin back together again and back as one. It is also major because of the battles between the USSR and the USA. The war also shaped great people that wouldn’t have been so generous if the war might not have happened, such as Fidel Castro. It is these types of battles that can shape nations and in the end they can also bring nations closer together or even further apart. If some of these events didn’t happen then everyone might be an enemy to each other but because of these wars countries work together and even become aligns because of it.